On Monday, Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman signed into law LB 634, the Wildfire Control Act of 2013 which authorizes the state to contract for one Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT). The act also directs that two bases for SEATs be constructed and to acquire one or more mobile SEAT bases. It went into effect immediately after being signed.
The signed bill also directs the Nebraska Forest Service to administer fuel reduction programs and to provide wildfire training for volunteer fire departments and private landowners.
Before the legislation was modified, the original version authorized the state to contract for two SEATS at Chadron and Valentine, but that was eventually cut back to one. Another item removed from the bill was direction to establish a Type 3 Incident Management Team in the state.
Tanker 910, a DC-10, at Rapid City, April 23, 2013. Photo by Bill Gabbert
After 548 days, the U.S. Forest Service is going to issue exclusive use five-year contracts for three next-generation air tankers, in spite of the protest filed by Neptune Aviation, a company that was passed over in the contract awards. Three companies were notified Thursday by USFS contracting officers that the contracts are being actually awarded — Minden, 10 Tanker Air Carrier, and Coulson.
In testimony Wednesday before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Chief of the Forest Service Tom Tidwell said he has the authority to override the protest filed by Neptune Aviation for being passed over in the awards for next-generation air tankers. Chief Tidwell said he will make a decision within the next couple of weeks.
He also said the USFS hopes to obtain the C-27J aircraft that the Air Force may decide to declare surplus, and the agency would outfit them with scaled down versions of the Modular Airborne FireFighting System (MAFFS) retardant tank systems that are used in military C-130s, rather than conventional gravity-powered tanks.
A Colorado Senator wants the federal government to override a protest that could delay the acquisition of seven next-generation air tankers this fire season. Neptune Aviation lodged a protest with the Government Accountability Office which could delay the activation of the new contracts until August 26. (Read the full story over at Fire Aviation.)
Agriculture Secretary Vilsack meets USFS firefighters in Boise, May 13. USDA photo.
During a visit to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, Idaho today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Interior Secretary Sally Jewell (just 34 days into her new job) discussed the state of wildfire preparedness.
Secretary Vilsack said there will be 500 fewer firefighters and 50 fewer engines this year as a result of the budget cuts required by the sequester process adopted by Congress and signed by the President. Vilsack said the overall reduction is more than seven percent.
Several news organizations reported on today’s visit. The Salt Lake Tribune wrote, in part:
In answering a question about whether firefighters would make it a priority to protect watersheds in Utah, [Secretary] Jewell said the cuts also are reducing what the federal land agencies spend on preventing fires and rehabilitating lands after a fire.
“You can’t do as much as that advance work as you would like or the post-fire remediation to maintain the integrity of those ecosystems,” Jewell said.
The Idaho Statesman:
Idaho Republican Jim Risch, who joined the two cabinet secretaries on the tour praised the firefighting agencies for doing as well as they can with less. But Risch, who voted for the cuts, offered little hope the secretaries will be able to avoid the robbing-Peter-to-pay-Paul tradeoffs they face.
“”We got to accept the fact there is not going to be federal funding like there was before,” Risch said.
But in August, if all of the firefighting resources are already in place and more are needed to meet the threat Risch said he and other western lawmakers will put together a coalition to get the emergency funding that is necessary.
Jewell joined smokejumpers Sunday on a training flight five weeks into her tenure as Interior secretary. She also led the entourage over to the Boise Fire Dispatch outside of NIFC to see how the firefighters from federal, state and local governments work together on the ground.
Federal assets include more than 13,000 firefighters, including permanent and seasonal federal employees; more than 1,600 engines; up to 26 multiengine air tankers and two water scooper aircrafts; approximately 27 single engine air tankers; and hundreds of helicopters.
Note the “up to 26 multiengine air tankers”. The reality is, there are eight large air tankers on contract — seven 50+ year-old P2Vs, and one BAe-146. In addition to those, six of the seven “next generation” 3,000+ gallon air tankers that were just notified they would be receiving contracts are months or more away from being certified by the FAA and the Interagency AirTanker Board. Some of them may not be seen dropping on a fire until late this summer or even next year, if they are certified at all. The two scoopers mentioned carry less than 1,500 gallons. In addition, the USFS may again borrow some 2,000-gallon, 50-year old Convair 580s from Canada if they are available and not tied up on fires.
Today the U.S. Forest Service announced they intend to award contracts to five companies for a total of seven next-generation air tankers. The companies with winning bids were Minden, Aero Air (aka Erickson Aerotanker), Aero Flite, Coulson, and 10 Tanker Air Carrier.
